“Of course youlookalike, but I can see the differences more clearly now. You both have dimples but they’re on opposite sides, and your hair parts a little to the left of center.” She waves her hand toward Case’s head. “Whereas yours is more to the right and you have the smallest of cowlicks on your crown,” she tells me.
My brother and I stare at each other with matching surprised looks. “Most people can’t tell us apart,” Case replies. “Especially not the first time they meet us.”
Blair smiles at that, her chest puffing up a little. “Glad I haven’t lost my super-observant touch, then.”
“Sorry,” I blurt out, “For not introducin’ myself before, I mean. I’m Sutton Cooper, this idiot’s older brother.”
“By four minutes,” Case sighs.
Blair laughs and I lose myself in the free and easy way she just lets it loose.She’s still just as captivating as she was back in Boston.
Stepping closer, I hold my hand out her way. What I’m not prepared for is the moment her palm slides against mine. It’s like no one else exists, my vision tunnels and all I can see is herandonlyher. Her peach-pink lips part on a silent gasp, her eyes dropping to where our hands touch before her head snaps up and her surprised gaze meets mine.
I don’t get a chance to say another word though because while I was lost in my Blair-centered world, Case decided it was time to act and catch the donkey unaware.
“Got it!” he shouts triumphantly, startling the animal.
Then Grumpsreallyproves he is the menace we all know him to be–or maybe more of a disaster on four legs. He bucks his hind legs in the air, karate chopping the tall bamboo plants closest to him with an almightycrack. This startles him even more and makes him spin around, kicking out again, one of his hard and scarily accurate hooves shooting out and knocking over my treasured water feature. The feeder hose is knocked free in the process and suddenly there’s water spraying high up into the air with surprising velocity.
Blair screams as pieces of bamboo stalk go flying, followed by an impromptu water shower that just won’t stop.
Case yells at Grumps, diving sideways to try and tackle-hug him like I’d imagine a rodeo rider might do. All I can do is stand there in shock and watch the whole catastrophe happen. I’m left wondering what I could even do to help at this point.
Thankfully, Grumps runs out of a newly created, verylargegap in the garden’s boundary, leaving Case to crash to the ground in what is now a mix of mulch and mud thanks to the broken fountain. And still, the water flows.
Thinking on my feet, I grab the broken and leaking hose and bend it over to stem the flow before taking in the now deathly quiet scene of destruction in front of me.
“Are you OK?” I ask Blair first–she’s our guest after all.
I haven’t thought about what stateImight be in until her wide gaze scans over me. Following her lead, I look down to see my previouslycleanshirt and jeans now covered in leaves,shards of bamboo stalk, and I’m also soaked through to the bone.
All I can think about right now is the fact that my hand is still tingling from where Blair and I touched.
And if that means what Ithinkit does, then my life–as I know it–just got a hell of a lot more interesting.
“That donkey is goin’ to be the death of me,” Case groans. “Swear to God, if I didn’t believe that he was Gramps reincarnated, I’d be looking up recipes for donkey stew.” He rolls onto his back and looks over the carnage. “Shit, Sutt. Your garden.”
I take in the mess and for the first time in a while, Idon’tfeel the world figuratively caving in on me. Will fixing up the damn donkey’s mess take time? Yep. Will it be a little while before we can order in more bamboo and whatever fittings we might need to get the found working again? Yep.
Is it something worth getting angry and worked up about? Nope.
Instead, a snort escapes me. Then a chuckle. Soon after, all three of us are laughing.
A flash of pink lying on the ground amongst all the destruction catches my eye. Without thinking, I walk over to Case and help him get back on his feet before I bend down and pick up the item of clothing that triggered this whole unforgettable first meeting with my One.
Turning around, I step back to where Blair is standing still, her eyes tracking me as I come to a stop in front of her.
That’s when I lift my hand, fighting back a smirk as her satin underwear hangs limply from my finger, except they’re now a mix of pinkandAlaskan mountain mud. “I believe you wanted these back?”
She scrunches up her nose but thankfully takes them from me.
“I’ll replace them, of course,” I add.
That earns me an amused look. “You’re going to replace my pink satin underwear?”
I ignore Case’s snort behind us. “It’s the least I can do. It’s my—ourdonkey—that caused this ruckus. I’d like to make it up to you.”
“By buying me new panties?” she repeats deadpan.I can’t get a read on this woman.
